I grabbed the emergency shampoo and body wash Shayna and I kept in our locker and headed for the shower. As I scrubbed Sandra’s DNA off my body, my mind wandered back to Miguel’s comment. He had asked how Aric was “allowed” to live with me. Although I had said Aric could do whatever he wanted, I couldn’t be positive that was completely true.
When I finished washing, I reached for my towel to dry my face. But it was gone.
“You don’t call on me anymore, kitten.”
I slammed backward against the tiled wall.
He tilted his head; an amused smile lifted the edges of his mouth. I ripped the towel from his hand and wrapped it around me before he could answer.
Misha’s smile turned from amused to downright wicked. “I came to see you. Is this any way to greet an old friend?”
“Are you out of your blood-sucking mind?” I stumbled out and scanned the locker room. “Anyone could walk in here!”
“Do not fear, my love. Edith Anne and Agnes Concepcion are guarding both entrances.”
The Catholic schoolgirls were here, too. Awesome. “Oh. Okay, Misha. Now I feel better.” I stomped behind the row of gray lockers and slammed my door open. My hands yanked on my clothes as if Mother Teresa’s soul depended on it. The moment all the important girl parts were covered, I stormed around to the other side and jabbed my finger into his chest. “Do
“No, not currently.” Much to my annoyance, he continued to smile and took a seat on the wooden bench. His long legs bent at an angle as he leaned forward to rest his forearms against his knees. Misha’s light blue silk shirt gave his gray eyes an added glint, or maybe his amusement. Whatever it was, it bugged the hell out of me. “I see by those marks between your breasts the mutt continues to show you affection. Now, had you been in my company, the only evidence of our time together would be a smile that would never fade from your face.”
I adjusted my top and narrowed my eyes. Emme must’ve missed a few spots. “How long were you watching me?”
“I arrived somewhere between the cucumber body wash and the juniper and olive oil conditioner.”
My hands dropped to my sides. “I don’t believe you. And for the love of all things holy, wipe that smirk off your face.”
He didn’t. In fact, it widened. “You seem angry with me. Why is that?”
“I’m not angry with you, Misha. I’m
“Why? After all, I have seen you without clothing before.” He chuckled. “Or did you fail to inform him?”
I picked up my wet towel off the floor and tossed it into the hamper next to him. “I’ll have you know I tell Aric everything.” Excluding the part where his archenemy had held me against him naked. “Now tell me what you’re doing here.”
“My master Uri is visiting my residence. I came to invite you to join us for dinner.”
“Am I on the menu?”
Misha considered me quite the comedian. His shoulders shook when he laughed. “No. I assure you, you are not.”
I paused. Something didn’t seem right. “You could have called me or texted me. There was no reason to stop by. Especially here.”
Misha’s wicked smile faded. The fingers of his right hand drummed against his knee as he regarded me. “I know,” he answered quietly.
I gestured around the room. “Then why all this, Misha?”
His stare continued to pierce through me. “I supposed I desired to spend time with you.”
My mouth parted with surprise. Not just because of what Misha said, but how he said it. The ever-present arrogance in his voice had vanished as well as his flirtatious demeanor. I couldn’t sniff a lie. But I knew he meant what he said. I leaned against the wall of lockers and crossed my arms. “Misha, I can’t meet your master. And I can’t have dinner with you. Aric and I are together now. You have to respect that.”
“You dismiss me so easy. Would you have done so if the mongrel failed to hold your interest?”
“Don’t call him that.”
Misha’s stood. His expensive and handmade shoes barely made a sound against the weathered linoleum floor as he marched toward me. He stopped, mere inches from my chest. “You didn’t answer my question.”
I raked my fingers through my wet hair. “And I won’t. It’s a moot point, Misha. Aric means everything to me. I can’t picture life without him.”
My breath caught when Misha yanked me to him, pulling me tight. The tip of a fang scraped my jugular, and his seductive voice whispered against my screaming skin, “Very well, Celia. But remember this, when you tire of playing with beasts and desire the touch of a real man, you know where to find me.”
And just like that he was gone.
“What’s wrong, Ceel? Did you have a bad day?”
My pulse continued to race long after Misha disappeared. I’d been stupid to think my guardian angel with fangs and I could just be buds. Without thinking, I rubbed my neck where his fang had grazed. Damn. Misha wanted me. Damn.
Most women would fall back squirming with glee if two very hot and very Alpha males desired them. Maybe that remained another virtue that made me “weird.” I didn’t welcome Misha’s touch. In fact, I rather resented it, just as I’d expect Aric to feel if some female tried to seduce him. The tires squeaked as I veered onto the highway. “I just need to get home.”
Shayna turned to look at me, and Taran and Emme abruptly stopped talking in the back. I hadn’t meant to reveal how upset I was, but my tone gave me away. Shayna rubbed my shoulder. “What happened, Celia?”
“I just didn’t have a good day” was the only answer I could manage.
I lowered the window as Tahoe came into view. The sun had begun to set in the horizon, painting the swirling clouds peach, orange, and red while the encroaching night transformed the clear water into a startling midnight blue. Maybe Tahoe knew I needed her tonight. Deep gulps of air soothed and refreshed me with each intake, and her mysticism poured on my body like cream, cooling my frustration, anger, and worry. But I still needed more. I needed Aric’s arms around me. And I needed him to erase the insecurities trigged from my interaction with Miguel.
“Do you want to talk about it, sweetie?” Emme asked quietly from the back.
I took another deep breath. “I just need things to be better.” No demons. No chastising Elders. No dead bodies. No master vampires in search of a nibble. Was that too much to ask? I thought of where life had taken me thus far. Yeah. Probably.
I pulled into our neighborhood. My spirit leapt from my chest and did a cartwheel when I spotted Koda’s Yukon parked behind Aric’s Escalade.
Shayna threw her fists in the air. “Woo-hoo. Puppy’s home!”
I swerved into the garage. I’d barely set the car in park before Shayna flung open the door and raced up the backstairs. Taran followed behind her, trying not to appear too eager, but her steps were almost as quick. “Go on, Emme.” Allowing her ahead of me seemed more polite than knocking the lot of them down and barreling into the house. What can I say? Class is my middle name.
Emme stopped at the top of the landing, her smile faded as she took in what waited inside. “Paul’s dead,” Koda said from the kitchen. My hand gripped the wooden railing. Paul. Leader of the raccoon gaze was . . .
Emme passed through the doorway and into the laundry room slowly. I somehow followed, my feet growing heavier with each movement. We entered the kitchen. Koda, Gemini, and Liam stood with their backs against our
